Security

The US Dept. Of Health and Human Services and the Office of Civil Rights maintain a public web page with all of the reported HIPAA data breaches of 500 or more records. The web page, commonly called the “Wall of Shame” can be found at the link below. Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services […]

With Mastercard’s latest patent, we’re getting closer to using our cryptocurrency credit cards to purchase goods. According to the filing, the method addresses the storing of both fiat and cryptocurrencies under one profile. This means, as a user, you’d have two linked accounts with your bank — one for your fiat wealth, and one for […]

A nice resource: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Collaborative of Wisconsin (HIPAA COW)Established in 2001, HIPAA COW is a non-profit organization open to entities considered to be Covered Entities, Business Associates, and/or Trading Partners under HIPAA, as well as any other organization impacted by HIPAA regulations.Learn more about our upcoming conferences and events HIPAA […]

From Bloomberg: Health-care providers and government agencies across the U.S. have seen an increase in cybersecurity breaches in recent months, exposing sensitive data from hundreds of thousands of people as the sector scrambles to find adequate defense mechanisms. Source: Cyberattacks on Health-Care Providers Are Up in Recent Months – Bloomberg Another report indicating that healthcare […]

A new technology is redefining the way we transact. If that sounds incredibly far-reaching, that’s because it is. Blockchain has the potential to change the way we buy and sell, interact with government and verify the authenticity of everything from property titles to organic vegetables. It combines the openness of the internet with the security […]

From Advanced Automation Blog: In hopes of making things easier for practice managers, I’m providing a basic accountability checklist to use with your IT administrator and/or provider to make sure basic security is in place or in progress. This list is derived from an amalgamation of baseline requirements for cyber-liability insurance and industry best practices. If […]

From The Week: AI and machine learning are part of a bigger attempt to overhaul cybersecurity. As attacks continue to increase, health-care companies have learned that it’s not enough to rely on anti-virus or anti-malware protection to stop eager hackers from infiltrating their systems. They’re starting to figure out hacker patterns and blocking them before […]

Passwords should be treated as you would your toothbrush. Never let anyone else use it and change it every three months. Good professional password protocol includes passwords that are at least eight characters long, include numbers. letters, upper and lowercase and even symbols. They should be changed every three months and you should assign user rights […]

From McKinsey & Company: Blockchain’s core advantages are decentralization, cryptographic security, transparency, and immutability. It allows information to be verified and value to be exchanged without having to rely on a third-party authority. Rather than there being a singular form of blockchain, the technology can be configured in multiple ways to meet the objectives and commercial […]

Overview: HIPAA compliance consists largely of having the right forms and signatures. Learn what PHI, CE, NPP, BA and Exempt mean and why it matters.Understand the critical elements of risk assessment,the six basic steps to compliance and four critical important real world measures dentists should be taking beyond the paperwork that can make an actual […]

Before dawn a panel truck silently backs up to the dental office door. A cat burglar picks the lock and a team of thieves surge into the office. They wrestle fifteen filing cabinets into the truck then take off to a secret warehouse where dozens of outlaw clerks await. The clerks page through each chart […]

From Mashable: The advertising giant wants you to believe that you’re in control of what data you share, and who you share it with. We know that’s mostly an illusion… from May 18 to May 22, a Facebook bug automatically set a host of users’ new post settings to “public” regardless of their selected setting. It […]

From The Washington Post: In its quarterly threat report unveiled Tuesday, cybersecurity company Rapid7 found that the health-care sector experienced a surge in cyberattacks during the first quarter of 2018 — so many that it ranked as the top-targeted industry in the first three months of the year. Source: The Cybersecurity 202: Why cybersecurity experts are so concerned about […]

There are four steps every dentist needs to take immediately to protect patient confidentiality. At the most basic level, set up and enforce the use of passwords. Ideally you should have secret, individual, eight character passwords for each team member to log onto their computer. You should then have completely different passwords for each person […]

From Bloomberg: Digital currencies have been accused of worsening the opioid crisis because they make it easier to buy and sell drugs anonymously. Now Intel Corp. and the pharmaceutical industry are planning to fight fire with fire. The chipmaker, working with health companies, aims to use so-called blockchain technology — similar to the one that underpins […]

From Techdirt: The security researcher who was at the center of an audacious and disturbing government demand to unmask several Twitter accounts on the basis of an apparently menacing smiley emoji contained in one of them is now facing zero prison time for his supposed harassment of an FBI agent. Justin Shafer, who was originally facing […]

Facebook on Tuesday released a rule book for the types of posts it allows on its social network, giving far more detail than ever before on what is permitted on subjects ranging from drug use and sex work to bullying, hate speech and inciting violence. Source: Facebook reveals long-secret rules it has used to police […]

PPP (Professional Protector Plan) the dental liability insurance plan offers a sample computer use policy for their liability policy holders. You can see it here: Computer Use Policy Here is a short sample: Misuse of Clinic computers, networks, and Internet access may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment. Examples of Misuse […]

…hackers were able to pinch the casino’s high-roller database after gaining access to its network via the smart thermostat in a fish tank in the lobby. Source: Hackers steal casino’s customer data via connected fish tank | Internet of Business Casinos refer to the high-roller big spenders as “whales”. It seems the hackers got the […]

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., today announced the sentencing of ANNIE VUONG, 31, to 2-to-6 years in state prison for stealing personal identifying information from more than 650 patients at the dentist’s office where she worked. Three previously convicted co-defendants then used that information to fraudulently purchase more than $700,000 in Apple products. […]